Why the busiest shopping day of the year was once a police headache

Cultures · Published 29 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Black Friday is now a global retail phenomenon, but it began as a local nuisance. Before it became a synonym for holiday profit, Philadelphia police used the term to describe the chaotic traffic and crowds that clogged city streets the day after Thanksgiving, long before retailers embraced the branding.

The origins of Black Friday are far removed from its current status as a retail juggernaut. While the term was historically used to describe various calamities—most notably the 1869 gold market crash—its retail association emerged in the 1950s. Initially, it referred to workers calling in sick after Thanksgiving to extend their holiday. By the 1960s, Philadelphia police were using the phrase to characterize the overwhelming congestion caused by early holiday shoppers. Retailers initially disliked the negative connotation, attempting to rebrand it as Big Friday, but the original name persisted.

The narrative shifted in the 1980s when merchants popularized a more favorable explanation: the transition from red ink, representing financial losses, to black ink, signifying annual profits. This rebranding helped solidify the day as the unofficial start of the Christmas season. Over time, the event expanded beyond a single day, with the rise of Cyber Monday and the push for earlier store openings on Thanksgiving, which some critics derisively labeled Black Thursday. By 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly altered these patterns, forcing a shift toward online commerce and longer, more distributed sales periods.

Today, the concept has transcended American borders, though it often undergoes cultural translation. In countries like Egypt, Libya, and Pakistan, the event has been rebranded as White Friday or Blessed Friday to align with local religious and cultural values. Other regions have developed their own variations, such as Yellow Friday in Saudi Arabia or the French Days in France. Despite its global adoption, the event remains a subject of debate, balancing the desire for consumer deals against concerns regarding the over-commercialization of holidays and the impact on retail workers.

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